The uniformity of lighting of dashboards or other interior parts is usually a critical parameter in the area of interior signal lighting. Because front and rear contour lights, directional indicator lights, and daytime running lights are used to accentuate the exterior style features of a vehicle, requirements for homogeneity are also becoming essential for exterior signal lighting. For these purposes, light guide components with light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are commonly used as a light source.
Light guide components, constructed according to the required appearance, can have a linear base or a planar base.
A linear light guide component can be added to one side or both sides in the direction of the light guide axis, i.e., usually perpendicular to the lighting direction. The drawback to this approach is that it cannot be used on a complicated contour shape with relatively small diameters.
A planar light guide component is ordinarily provided with several LEDs and an axis that coincides with the lighting direction. In order to attain the required homogeneity of the emerging beam, it is possible to use collimating optical elements on the input surface or properly constructed optical elements on the exit surface. The drawback of this approach is the large number of LEDs arranged along the entire input surface.
It would be desirable to have a light guide module that can achieve a required lighting using totally uniform lighting of the contour surface.